Witnesses: US General Opposed Hospital Abuse Probe

A picture of an emergency room inside the hospital located in Crete, NE.

Two retired U.S. military officers are testifying that the American general who led NATO's training mission in Afghanistan opposed an inspector general's investigation into "Auschwitz-like conditions" at the main Afghan army military hospital.

The retired officers' testimony, prepared for a House hearing Tuesday, said Lt. Gen. William Caldwell IV admonished subordinates for contacting the Defense Department's inspector general about the hospital. One officer, retired Army Col. Gerald Carozza Jr., said Caldwell had expressed concern that the investigation request was too close to the 2010 congressional elections.

Caldwell currently heads the Army North command and is senior commander at Fort Sam Houston. A North Command spokesman said the allegations would be proven false.

The House Oversight and Government Reform Committee said Caldwell could be called to testify at a future hearing.

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